CORVALLIS, Ore. – Coming off a dominant season in the Frontier Conference, new Cascade Collegiate Conference full member Lewis-Clark State College topped the 2020-21 CCC Men’s Basketball Coaches’ Preseason Poll, released Wednesday.
The Warriors, who picked up seven first-place votes and 139 points in the poll, finished last year with a 29-3 record, a regular-season conference championship, a conference tournament trophy, and a trip to the NAIA National Championship Tournament – which was unfortunately canceled due to the coronavirus. LC State has some unfinished business under NABC Coach of the Year Austin Johnson and returns a solid group from last year.
Last year in the CCC, the College of Idaho was on fire heading into the national tournament and picked up its 25
th-straight victory in the first round before the tournament was canceled. The No. 1-ranked Coyotes finished the year with a 31-3 overall record and picked up four first-place votes in the preseason poll (134 points) after making history as the first team in CCC history to go undefeated in conference play. C of I won the regular and tournament championships and looks to pick up right where it left off.
Oregon Tech grabbed 118 points to sit in the No. 3 spot on the poll, also advancing to the national tournament last year. Southern Oregon University isn’t too far behind the Owls, with 104 points to sit in fourth, after picking up the second automatic qualifier for the CCC after taking second in the regular season standings.
Bushnell University – which picked up one first-place vote – and Eastern Oregon University tied for fifth place, each with 87 points, while Northwest University sits in sixth with 71 points. Warner Pacific University (61 points), Corban University (55 points) and Multnomah University (35 points) round out the top-10, while Walla Walla University (28 points) and The Evergreen State College (14 points) closed out the poll.
The basketball season’s start date was pushed back due to the coronavirus pandemic but is expected to start in December with the CCC Championship Tournament, present by U.S. Bank, starting Feb. 24 on campus sites.
2020-21 CCC Men’s Basketball Coaches’ Preseason Poll
Team (First-Place Votes) Points
1. Lewis-Clark State College (7) 139
2. College of Idaho (4) 134
3. Oregon Tech 118
4. Southern Oregon University 104
T-5. Bushnell University (1) 87
T-5. Eastern Oregon University 87
7. Northwest University 71
8. Warner Pacific University 61
9. Corban University 55
10. Multnomah University 35
11. Walla Walla University 28
12. The Evergreen State College 14